Possible Workflows

When setting up your library's course reserve workflow, it may be handy to keep the following tips in mind:

To create the course records and get all the items attached in a timely manner, it may be beneficial to split up the work. First, create all the course records. By creating the course records at one time, you will be better able to make sure that the courses have standardized entries, which will help both staff and searchers.

Within the course record, think about utilizing multiple instances of the course name field. For example, you might have one entry match what is in the course catalog. Then have one entry write out the course name and number, and a third entry listing what people actually call it. So a course might be entered as:

Chem101
Chemistry 101
Freshman Chemistry

If your library is part of a consortium, use the course name field to differentiate one campus' courses from another.

ENG 111 Campus A
ENG 111 Campus B

Your library may also consider changing the Call Number to Course Name. Innovative staff can add/modify the MARC tag and indicators used for call number (course name) in bibliographic records. Whether to use course name or the call number usually depends on the shelving order your library uses for reserve materials. If your library files/shelves by course name and number, you probably want to use course name as the call number. The variable fields are repeatable, but only the first occurrence of the field (topmost in the list) will display in the WebPAC call number field so the first occurrence in the field should reflect the shelving naming convention.

The Professor/Instructor name field can be used for the professor's name as well as adding Teaching Assistant names. Remember that some students may be more familiar with the Teaching Assistant. The system is designed to index all name fields, so any associated name can be used to retrieve the course record.

Once you have all your course records set up, you can move on to your bib and item records for the material not in your library's catalog (professor's copy of a book, a textbook, photocopy sets, etc). For creating multiple new bib/item records, it may be more efficient to use the Millennium Cataloging module. Because of the multiple tools available in the Cataloging module, library staff can create the bib and item records more quickly and easily than they would be able to do in the Course Reserves mode of the Circulation module.

To make circulation of Course Reserves materials easier, we suggest that you BARCODE EVERYTHING, including photocopied materials. It is much easier and more accurate to scan a barcode than it is to type in a book's title or the course number. If you cannot barcode a professor's copy of a book, you can barcode an envelope and put the book inside it, or barcode an index card and stick the card in the book.

If you are using , your staff may also want to create all the media files at once, making this a two-step process.

Once you have completed the cataloging of your reserve items, then proceed to do the linking of the bib/item records to the course records. Using this workflow will make the process much faster and will feel more streamlined.